Established by The Commonwealth Fund in 1925, and modeled after the
Rhodes Scholars program, the Harkness Fellowships aim to produce the
next generation of health policy leaders.Talented mid-career
professionals from participating countries (Australia, Canada, Germany,
the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom)
are given the opportunity to participate in health policy research in
the United States. Since 2001, a collaboration with CFHI has brought a Canadian perspective to the program.

"Dr. Hayes is an outstanding candidate for the Canadian Harkness
Fellowship," said Robin Osborn, Vice-President and Director of the International
Program in Health Policy and Innovation for the Fund. "These opportunities have been described as a life-changing experience -
enabling Fellows to step back from the day-to-day demands of their work
to test boundaries in developing innovative approaches to health care
delivery and complex policy problems."

During the 12-month tenure, Fellows work with leading U.S. health policy
experts and produce a peer-reviewed journal article or policy report.
Dr. Hayes will be conducting his research at the Institute for
Healthcare Improvement (IHI) in Cambridge, Mass., focusing on
developing successful quality improvement initiatives that incorporate
the concept of workload-capacity balance. He will also develop tools
that organizations can utilize to successfully implement quality
improvement projects.

"CFHI congratulates Dr. Hayes on his accomplishment," said CFHI President Maureen O'Neil. "Throughout his career he has demonstrated exceptional leadership on
patient safety initiatives that has helped strengthen the quality of
our healthcare system."

Dr. Hayes has led a distinguished career at St. Michael's since 2005. He
is also an assistant professor at the University of Toronto's
Department of Medicine and its Institute for Health Policy, Management
and Evaluation. Since 2008, he has been a medical officer at the Canadian Patient Safety Institute where he leads patient safety and quality initiatives. There, he has
led research projects on rapid response teams, central line programs
and ventilator bundle programs.

The Harkness Fellowship Award was announced on May 29 at the CAHSPR
(Canadian Association for Health Services and Policy Research)
Conference in Vancouver.

The Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to healthcare improvement
and transformation for Canadians and is funded through an agreement
with the Government of Canada. CFHI collaborates with governments,
policy-makers, and health system leaders to convert evidence and
innovative practices into actionable policies, programs, tools and
leadership development.

The Commonwealth Fund is a private foundation that promotes a high-performing health care
system that achieves better access, improved quality, and greater
efficiency, particularly for society's most vulnerable. The Fund
carries out this mandate by supporting independent research on health
care issues and making grants to improve health care practice and
policy.

SOURCE Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement

Image with caption: ""I am deeply honored to receive the Harkness Fellowship," said Dr. Hayes. "I am grateful to CFHI and the Fund for this incredible opportunity to research initiatives that can help meet the growing demand for quality improvement projects in healthcare delivery in Canada and the U.S." (CNW Group/Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20130529_C3278_PHOTO_EN_27247.jpg